Bathtub



Aug' 14, .1951 H. A. DANIELsoN 2,564,190

BATHTUB Filed Feb. 19, 1949 Patented Aug. 14, 1951 UN ITE-D .STATES PATENT. 4()F FICE BATHTUB Harry A. Danielson, Long "Beach, fla'll.

.Application February 19, 1949, Serial No. 2775.407

1 Claim. v (Cl. 4-'1'7'3`) My invention relates to the field .of .bathing has beenmadein themanner in which .a tulo can V'be ,positioned 'between ladjoining walls to ,-form an "integral parjt thereof, and at `the same .time to eiect a waterproof junction therewith. In addition, Vthe `present day bath 'tub 'isnotformed with handle means to assist a person in getting into or out or ithe tub, nor is it formed with a -soap receptacle as an integral part of the tub structure.

As a result of the above mentioned idisadvan- -tages itis dilicult to-eiect la waterproof joint between 'the Aadjoining walls and the tub. In addi- '.tion .an auxiliary lsoap holding receptacle must be installed which -is not only expensive but v'is a constant danger inasmuch as a person may slip in the tub Vand :strike the upwardly projecting soapfdish. Also, inpr-ior tubsfa herizontalihandle `must normally begmountedon one of the adjoin- .ing walls .to assist `a person to lget in or A'out of the tub, as wel-l as providing a support for towels.

The applicant has found Athat due -to the -poor 4joint existing between v'the plaster on adjoining walls and the-:present day tub, water V4tends to -seep inwardly therebetween with the result that `the plaster becomes water soaked and tends :to iake 4off and loosenfrom the..supp.orting 'lath. Soap likewise accumulates :at the junction Eline .between the tub and plaster whichresults .finamoist runsanitary varea which :is difficult to clean, :and serves as vanideal `place for ,germs .andbacteria -to breed.

The jpurpose of the applicants .present :invention is .to eliminate the disadvantages inherent to the presentzday bath tub, and to'.pro.vide:a tub which is safe to use andeasy to install.

A .major .object of vmy invention is ito provide a .bath tub which .can -be installed between ad-` joining walls .to :form a water .tight joint -with .the adjoining walls, will .tend to Vdecrease ,acci- .dents occurring when -.a person venters .ordeames .the tub by providing la handle which can Lbe grasped to assist this act, and has an.on--prol'ect- `ing soap receptacle formed as ,an integral ,part

of the tub which eliminates `the rpossibili-ty .of injury to a bather should he slip or fall while in thetub.

Another object of my invention is to furnish a bath tub that fcan :be `:install-ed at no greater expense than the present day bath tub, has an extremely simple construction, and will .decrease the maintenance cost of a structure in which 'it is installed .as there :is .no tendency for water or moisture to seep between ,the junction lineof thetub and the adjoining'walls.

A .still urther object of my .invention .is to reduce the .cost ofmaking a bath l.tub installation, in'tha't,'the'soap vreceptacle is formed as an integral part of the tub which eliminates the necessity ,of a :separate .soap receptacle being pur- -chasedand installed on one .of the walls adjoining thetub.

Theseand other..obje cts vand advantages ofmy .invention will become .apparent from 'the following .description of ,a preferred form thereof, and from ,the drawing illustrating that form in which: .F-ig. 1 is a perspective view vrof my bath tub; Eig. 2 is a vertical cross-sectional view of .the `device taken on line 2--2 of Fig. l;

Fig. 3 isa vertical cross-sectional view of the vdevice taken on the line 3-.3 ,of Fig. 1,; and,

vFig. 4 is a fragmentary perspective View of the inner wall Aportion .of the tub, and illustrating the manner in .which a handle and soap recep- `Itacle arefermed asanintegral part thereof.

Referring now .to `Fig. l 'for the Vgeneral .arrangement of `my invention, it will be seen that my iba-'th tub 'B .is substantially rectangular in shape, .and'lhas `a continuous flange F extending upwardly from the ends .and inwardly positioned sidewall thereon. .'The .bath tubfB includes two 'interior end portions 1.0 ,an .outwardly positioned side wall YI l, and `an inwardly positioned side .wall l2. As is ccmmonpractice in ,present day bathroom construction, the bath tu'bB is adapted to be installed jin a recess formed l.in the walls W, with vthe walls being adjacent to both .the ends 'Ill and the side SI12 of the tub. 0f Course, should it be desired the tub TB can be positioned in the corner of a 'bathroom rather than in .a recess ormedinthe wall structure.

in "Figs '2 and .3 it will .beseen that the .sides AED., 'H and VI2 nare substantially vertically positioned, and 'formed ,from Aa .metallic ,sheet material, with each ofthe sides terminating .at the top thereof in amember 13. The member I3 can 'be either horizontal or inclined ,slightly inwardly towards .the tub, and each Aof `the inembers 'f3 developing 'into .a .substantially vertical iange `F .on the ,outer edge thereof. Each of the .ilanges 'F terminates on its upper edge in a substantially llatsurface L4 that is adapted to come 'in Contact with the `plaster 'P which is applied .to lthe wall "W adjacent to that particular flange F. As a `result of this construction as may "best be seen in Figs. 2 and `3, the ,outer surface of the plasticP and the exposed surface of the flanges 1F are flush and in the same vertical plane.

Upon Amy 'tub B being installed on a bathroom 4iioor (not shown) suitable 4bracing'is placed un-` der Jthe bottom I6 of the "tu'b in such a Ymanner that when 1a -person V'is sitting vin the tub the metal members 'forming 'the tub are not .deflected -suicien'tly to cause the enamel with which 'they are lnormally coated to crack and permit corrosion nr rust 'to commence on the metal surlface situated thereunder. 'In'the event the enper edges of the flanges F, it will be apparent that the same advantage is obtained in eiecting a waterproof joint between the flanges and engaging wall surface when the plaster P has ,conventional tile coating the outer surface thereof. When such a construction is used, the

position of the tub with relation to the adjoining walls W must be such that the increased thickness of the plaster P and the tile coating same is compensated for to provide a vertical plaster surface that is flush with the anges F.

The forward side II of the tub is the one which a person climbs over in getting into or out of the tub, and accordingly is not provided with one of the upwardly extending flanges F. Rather, the side I I terminates in a substantially horizonal member I'I that on its forward edge is bent downwardly into a vertically positioned member I8. The lower edge of the member I8 is in the same horizontal plane as the downwardly positioned surface of the bottom IB on which the tub B is supported.

A soap containing receptacle is provided in the upper central portion of the wall I2 by a recess 253 being formed therein. The recess 2i] is provided with a longitudinally extending handle 2l of annular cross-section, with the recess so formed serving the dual purpose of providing a soap receptacle and handle means to assist a person in getting in or out of the tub. The recess 29 is rectangular in shape, and is preferably formed by bending a portion of the wall I2 and member I3 rearwardly to provide a vertical back member 22 and a rearwardly and downwardly sloping shell portion 23 on which the soap rests when it is positioned in the recess 20.

The outer edge of the shelf 23 is bent or curved downwardly to be brought smoothly into the substantially vertical side wall I2 which extends downwardly thereunder. Situated at each end of the recess 2B is a vertically positioned end piece 25 which is substantially rectangular in shape, and by a welding operation or other fastening means is joined to the end portion of the back member 22, the shelf 23, as well as the lower surface of one of the members I3 and the rearward surface of the wall I2.

The handle 2| is preferably fabricated from a tubular metallic stock, and is welded or otherwise secured to the end pieces 25 and extends longitudinally therebetween. Although the recess 20 is preferably formed by a stamping operation during the fabrication of the tub B, it will be apparent that it can also be formed by removing a portion of the tub and securing the back member 22 and shelf 23 to the tub to form the recess 2E! should this be found desirable. While I have shown the recess 20 and handle 2I on the rearwardly positioned wall I2 of my tub, it will be apparent that this same type of handle and recess can be formed on the wall portion II in the same manner should it be so desired.

The installation and use of my invention is extremely simple. After the tub B has been installed in a bathroom, and plaster P applied to the adjacent walls W, a watertight junction is secured between the tub and plaster by bringing the plaster into contact with the upper edge I4 of the flanges. The plaster P is of such a thickness that the outer face thereof is flush with the exposed surface of the flange F it comes in Contact with. Thus, there is no tendency for water to stand or seep through a junction line between the flanges F and the plaster P, as the water will ow downwardly along the exposed surface of the flanges to the members I3 on which it drains into the tub if these members are but slightly inclined inwardly.

The use of the device when installed is obvious. A person getting into or out of the tub B simply grasps the handle 2l in this operation, with the result that the person is braced should he start to fall or slip. The recess 20 simply serves to provide space where a bar of soap can be positioned on the shelf 23 in a conventional manner. Thus, a tub B is provided that is easy to maintain in a clean and sanitary condition as no water stands at or enters the junction line betwee the tub and the engaging plaster P, and as the handle 2| and soap receiving recess 20 are formed as an integral part of the tub they may be cleaned at the same time as the Ibalance of the tub.

While the particular bath tub herein shown and described in detail is fully capable of attaining the objects and providing the advantages hereinbefore stated, it is to be understood that it is merely illustrative of the presently preferred form of my invention, and that I do not mean to limit myself to the details of construction or design herein shown other than as defined in the appended claim:

I claim:

A bath tub that includes; a substantially rectangular water holding shell formed from a sheet material; three substantially horizontal members extending outwardly from the upper edges of the ends and one of the longitudinal sides of said shell, with a portion of said longitudinally extending member and the side of said shell situated thereunder being formed into a downwardly and outwardly extending member of L-shaped cross section; two vertically positioned plates, with each of said plates affixed to one of the ends of the said member of L-shaped cross section and a longitudinal side of said shell to form a compartment in which soap may be positioned; and three flanges, with each of said anges extending upwardly from the outer edges of said members, and the flange on said longitudinally extending member being in the same vertical plane as the longitudinally extending wall of said compartment.

HARRY A. DANIELSON.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

Y UNITED STATES PATENTS Number 

